Authentic Brands Group appoints Clément Smadja as chief legal officer

Authentic Brands Group has appointed Clément Smadja as chief legal officer, succeeding Jay Dubiner, who will remain with the business as executive vice chairman.

Smadja joins the US brand management group from Fox Corporation, where he served as senior vice president, advising on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, compliance and corporate governance. He played a leading role in establishing Fox as a publicly listed company and more recently worked on its proposed 22 billion dollar acquisition of Roku.

Speaking on the appointment, Matt Maddox, president and chief executive officer of Authentic, said: “Clem has an exceptional track record of advising on complex transactions. His sound judgment and deep legal expertise will be valuable as we continue building a global platform at the intersection of entertainment, sport and culture.”

Before joining Fox, Smadja was a partner at law firm Kirkland & Ellis, advising domestic and international clients on complex transactions and corporate matters.

“I was drawn to Authentic’s entrepreneurial culture and to a leadership team that approaches the business with ambition, creativity and discipline,” Smadja said, before adding that he was looking forward to helping the leadership team shape the company’s continued growth.

Dubiner has served as chief legal officer since 2015 and will now work with Maddox and founder and executive chairman Jamie Salter on major transactions and strategic priorities.

He commented: “Working alongside the incredible leadership at Authentic to grow the business and build the global legal team has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career."